Credit cards have to be verified by paypal before they can be used. When you enter a new credit card into paypal, PP will charge you a nominal amount ($1.95 or something). When you get the statement there is a code next to the transaction which you have to enter to confirm that the credit card is yours and then the money charged to your card is credited to your paypal accoiunt. A thief would therefore have to wait until the credit card statement shows up and then steal that as well as the card number before the card can be used with paypal so this should be the least of your worries.

I second Jeff's comments. You have to be aware that the terms and conditions are NOT the same in every country. Fees for accepting/withdrawing money are one specific instance where this applies.

Funding is definitely not confidential, as private accounts can incur a fee for accepting credit card funded payments. The recipient is free to choose whether they want to incur that fee, so you get the option to refuse the payment. I've had payments returned as the recipient choose not to accept credit card funded payments.

Yes, The receiver can refuse payment. I believe there is a time period in which the amount must be accepted or refused, or the system returns the payment. In fact the first item displayed in response to a search for "how long before payment is returned" gives the answer:

---
What happens to payments that aren't collected after thirty days?

Payments that are not collected after 30 days are returned to the sender and marked as "Returned" in the Transaction History. PayPal members can manually reverse unclaimed payments before the thirty-day automatic reversal. Members may also reverse unclaimed payments before the 30-day automatic reversal if the recipient has not signed up for PayPal using the email address to which the payment was sent.
---

"- they don't tell you up front that they act like a defacto bank on receiving money, unless you take two actions;"

You mean there is no clear statement in the Help that you have to first setup bank funding, and then transfer the money to your bank account or the money just sits in paypal? I agree there is no explanation of this until you access the withdraw money tab in you account. But once you do access that area of the account the procedure is pretty straight forward and explained step by step. Perhaps PayPal are assuming that people are not reading the help, and are presenting contextual information instead?

Personally I find it useful to be able to leave US$ amounts in my paypal account as it reduces transaction costs of foreign currency transactions, so I don't find the fact that PayPal retain money in your account until you chose to withdraw it to be an issue.

How much interest do you think you are losing out on?? Even if you've got a balance of $1000 you'd be looking at a few dollars a month at most? I'd be far more worried about what you're losing with the unfavorable exchange rates PayPal uses. Even so at present PayPal seems to the best available solution for small international transactions. The $40.00 or so the local banks charge to make international electronic money transfers makes PayPal's charges look pretty reasonable.

If I'm getting this right, let say that I was buying something, I pay the price to paypal and wait for seller to send me that thing. But if he can get money before he had sended that was he selling, then he can "legally" steal money from me, rihgt?

> "WITHDRAW FUNDS"
> Even I as a complete computer idiot was able to figure that one out.
I didn't consider Paypal like a bank, I thought of them like a Post Office/ exchange dealer. I was wrong, as they sit on your money, they're also in part a 'bank'.

> Some folks - me included - leave their money in their paypal account pending ebay purchase.
I don't leave money in institutions that make money from me on the exchange rate, then pays no interest. Even most cheque accounts pay interest.

Paul
> I find it useful to be able to leave US$ amounts in my paypal account as it reduces transaction costs of foreign currency transactions
As one with no intention to buy, I hadn't thought of that.

> The receiver can refuse payment. I believe there is a time period in which the amount must be accepted or refused, or the system returns the payment.

I didn't get this option, hence my question
"the Paypal FAQs refer to accepting foreign currency payments, they don't say 'where', and I can't see it anywhere. If anyone has accepted foreign currency payments, how or where in Paypal did you did it?"
I have since seen where it's done with "PayPalís Request Money", but not where it's initiated 'offline' by a simple request, as I had done here, and in the past buying via diyaudio.

> How much interest do you think you are losing out on?? Even if you've got a balance of $1000 you'd be looking at a few dollars a month at most?
Not much, but if you have have a bank account that pays mortgage rates, tax free, it's the opportunity cost. When i linked my Visa to draw money from for purchases it, I thought vice versa would apply - sales would automatically credit back, or PayPal would tell you otherwise, maybe I was naive

> I'd be far more worried about what you're losing with the unfavorable exchange rates PayPal uses.
If you're selling and buying, yes.

> Even so at present PayPal seems to the best available solution for small international transactions.
as long as know the ins and outs.

> The $40.00 or so the local banks charge to make international electronic money transfers makes PayPal's charges look pretty reasonable.
Mine is less, but I agree - I'm not saying PayPal is bad, just that for a first time seller all is not evident.

luka
> But if he can get money before he had sended that was he selling, then he can "legally" steal money from me, rihgt?

I don't think legal is the word

(I have written so much more here than could have anticipated) though the funds are now apparently in transit from PayPal to my bank . . can anyone answer the 'current state' of the original question:
I'm puzzled why I wasn't asked to accept funds ~ does it only apply to "PayPalís Request Money", not where it's initiated 'offline'?"